Rooted in Tradition - Torah Responds to a "Sour" Economy

«Now 39 years old and serving as the rabbi of a Chabad center near Atlanta, Rabbi Minkowicz has done something he never expected: open a gemach that deals primarily with non-Orthodox Jews in a prosperous stretch of suburbia. The reason, quite simply, is the prolonged downturn in the American economy, which has driven up the number of Jews identified by one poverty expert as the "middle-class needy."

The same phenomenon has appeared in Jewish communities across the country, albeit most often in those with existing Orthodox populations already familiar with the gemach system. This institution, rooted in biblical and Talmudic teachings and whose name is a contraction of the Hebrew words for "bestowal of kindness" ("gemilut chasadim"), is now meeting needs created by such resolutely modern causes as subprime mortgages, outsourcing and credit default swaps.»


NYT: Gemach Offers Loans Without Profit

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/03/us/a-traditional-jewish-loan-program-helps-ease-pain-of-tough-economic-times.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=gemach&st=cse


For Mobil Devices:


http://mobile.nytimes.com/2011/12/03/us/a-traditional-jewish-loan-program-helps-ease-pain-of-tough-economic-times.xml

-------------------

I grew up in a shul that hosted such societies - some were known as "oxies" whatever that means.

Also, my Dad's company had its own Federal Credit Union which offered low-cost loans to its members based upon the same premise of mutual help.

Shalom,
RRW